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VictoriaaHelenn

Everything has been so busy recently as I've been working nonstop for the past two weeks with maybe 3 days off. They've been really long shifts, well into the night. So most of my time has been either spent eating, sleeping or working.

This weekend has been no exception as it's been a super busy one.

I drove back down to Chichester yesterday, with my mum, whilst my stepdad drove down with their car. It was moving day!!

I'm so happy to be out of the student house I was living in as there was always something going wrong and it was full of mould! I honestly hated living there, I will not miss it!

The three of us spent the day cleaning the house, as my housemates were all lazy and didn't bother to do a single thing. Especially one of them, who literally moved all their stuff out and didn't bother to even tidy their room or run the hoover over it quickly. It was a MESS and it really smelt horrible!! I really was quite pissed off - but of course, knowing me, I won't actually say anything at all to them, I'll just pretend it was all okay. Someone please tell me why I'm sharing with the same person next year??

Peter, my stepdad, and I left my mum in charge of cleaning the house, whilst we spent two hours, running back and forth between the two properties to move my stuff. Finally we were done! Dropped the keys through the letter box and voila, I was no longer a resident there!!

Mum and Peter then went and checked into their B&B, whilst I drove back to the new house and started to put things away in the right places - starting with the kitchen! I spent so long doing it, that I had to grab my makeup and do it in the car as mum had already turned up to pick me up for dinner.

They'd reserved a table at The Anchor Bleu in Bosham, which has beautiful views out over the harbour! The table we had was right by a window looking out and I managed to take some gorgeous photos in the 2 and a half hours we were there for. We even watched the tide start coming in. Bear in mind that I don't own a fancy camera (my mum does) so the photos were taken on my iPhone!

I forgot to take pictures of my food - but the portions were ginormous and so so yummy!

I started with Calamari with Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce - they were super meaty and full of flavour. For main, I had real ale battered Cod and chips and finished with raspberry sorbet! All washed down with White Wine Spritzer! It was absolutely delicious and the service was fantastic!! I'm definitely taking Greg there when we go down in August!

They took me back to their B&B, as it was the same one mum stayed in when I had my operation and the owner invited me back then. It was mainly to satisfy my own curiosity!! It's a beautiful house! Peter drove me back to mine, I managed to sort most of my bedroom out so I had somewhere to sleep and it's looking so cosy and homely! It makes me happy!

The owner of the B&B invited me for breakfast this morning, which I took her up on. I drove over there and was greeted with such warm hospitality (and scrambled eggs with smoked salmon). She has a beautiful black labrador called Willow. She's also invited me over to see Willow anytime I'm feeling homesick!

After breakfast, we all left and headed to mine for a quick tidy up before mum and Peter left with me not far off. We ended up getting stuck in traffic for an hour on the M25 which wasn't fun at all! I also, at the time, had to get back for work at 2:30 but then they messed me around and told me it was 5pm then 4pm before eventually ringing me up and cancelling. I wasn't best pleased. But it did mean, however, that I have managed to write my first blog post in a long while!

I hope you enjoyed reading and hope you all had a lovely weekend! Did you do anything exciting??

You might have forgotten about me but I am still here! Still hanging on even though I've gone MIA for a little while.

I don't really know what to write in this little space of mine anymore. I'm an imposter in the blogging world - I don't understand how people think of ideas and write so naturally. I always seem to be scrabbling around trying to find ideas or even worse put it right on the back burner and forget all about it.

I briefly touched on how I was feeling in my last post about taking a break to see if that would do me any good. And although part of me has really missed blogging, another part of me has not. Instead of living my life through what I think will have been good to write about, I've actually lived in the moment. I think that has been good for me, I've left twitter alone for a little while, left reading other people's blog posts and focused on my own life.

In the time that I have been gone for, I've had some lovely, lovely messages sent to me - either comments on my blog post or direct messages on Twitter which have restored my faith in myself.

And honestly, it put the biggest smile on my face. It made realise that maybe people do actually enjoy reading my little space and it made me feel so happy inside. So I'm going to see if I can get back to this blogging thing - posting when I want to and make it work!

The last post I wrote on my blog was over a month ago. It was a roundup of April, a month where the majority of my time was spent at home home, rather than at uni home. It had given me time to plan, write and upload my blog posts so that they were going up three times a week - something that I was so, so proud of. I felt good about myself and I felt good about the little internet space that I have. Towards the end of the month, I started feeling a little bit down about my blog - I feel like an imposter, as though I'm not a real blogger. I feel I'm constantly scrabbling at the bottom trying to do my best but not getting anywhere with it. It's all silly really. I started off May with good intentions but slowly fizzled out and as it was a tough month any way, I decided to take a break. I've also ended up getting bored with blogging and I feel rather bummed out about the little internet space that I've created. I don't see the point in forcing blog posts to come out of my head and to not be passionate about them and for the energy to be low. May was a difficult month - I started my new uni job, I had end of year exams and an operation which took me at least two weeks to recover from. I also met up with John from John's Road to Volunteering in Southampton but I felt a bit poopy that day as I'd barely slept that night and I was feeling rather anxious. I only wish I'd been more alert and feeling better to be able to have enjoyed my day a little more. Luckily I'm all recovered now from my operation - big shoutout to my boyfriend who was an absolute gem in helping me out for the first week!! And for waking up at half 5 to get to the hospital then sitting in a stuffy, hot waiting room with me for 6 hours!! I'm also home and have found out I finish the year with 3 firsts!!! Still waiting to do solo performance exams but I'm still suffering with RSI along with carpel tunnel and a few other nerve and radial problems (it's great fun but I'm currently getting treatment for it!)

I'm back to working and things are incredibly busy this summer! Hopefully, I'll find some time for blogging, but for now I'm not going to give myself a schedule and will just blog when I feel like it. I've got a few blog post ideas I want to share with you, but they'll come when I'm ready. Is anyone else feeling a bit bummed out with their blogs at the moment? xx

Chapter 4 of 2017 done! We're a third of the way through 2017 already and that's completely crazy! April was by far the busiest month that I've had so far this year. For the majority of it, I was at home home which made me feel so much better and a lot calmer than I am when away at uni.

Here is a roundup of what I got up to this month:

1st April: I was part of a concert that Greg's mum had set up to raise money for their church. It was such a good night and I really enjoyed playing even though I got super nervous. They all seemed to like it! I even made it through a whole flute sonata with Greg and his mum as my accompaniment. It was also the last time I was allowed to play for a good couple of weeks due to Repetitive Strain Injury - it bloody sucks!

5th April: I drove myself to the Dentist, which was a good 30 minute drive away and in a town where I've never driven. I also really, really hate the dentist! Then once I drove myself back from there, I drove to pick up Greg from his before we had dinner with my parents.

6th April: My mum and step dad had gone off to Cornwall so I was in charge of Greg, Siobhan and the two pussy cats. We were off to my GrandPa's for the day. As Greg and I were getting ready, he sat down and my bed frame broke (well the piece of wood that the slats sit on snapped.) Not the best start to the day! I ended up shouting at Greg because he was stressing me out But we decided to move my mattress downstairs and then make a little fort. After that, I drove us up to my Grandpa's and as we got out the car I had a migraine. He then took us to Felixstowe for fish and chips - it was a lovely afternoon! Luckily, the migraine had gone by the time we had to drive home again!

7th April: It was just a chilling out day. The most exciting it got was going into town to birthday present shop for Greg's mum. We managed to get rid of my sister and then we tucked into dominos and watched The Crown.

8th April: Greg and I drove to his house for an appointment. We had packed a picnic so on the way back we popped into the local park. The afternoon I spent baking. We went to Miller and Carter in the evening, which was eventful. You can read about it here.

9th April: Was the hottest day of the year so far! We spent the day tidying and doing washing - like a proper married couple - haha! I cooked us dinner in the evening!

10th April: Greg and I went out on a little woodland walk in the morning. It was really refreshing! I then baked my sister's birthday cake in the afternoon.

11th April: Sister's Birthday! Nothing interesting actually happened but we all had a lovely Chinese for dinner. After that I took Greg back home.

15th April: Mum, Siobhan and I all went dress shopping for Siobhan's prom. I did also accidentally come away with a very nice dress that I can use for performances.

17th April: I got to see Greg again. I drove up to see him and we spent the afternoon with his grandparents, hanging out in their beautiful garden. We ate a curry for dinner and then I made him come home with me.

18th April: Greg and I went into town and didn't do anything that interesting. We also had a lovely McDonald's date for dinner before we went to the pub with his friends. It was a lovely night.

22nd April: I said bye bye to my family and went off to Greg's. We had a lovely meal with his family!

23rd April: Greg and I had another fairly chilled day and we ended up at his grandparents house again, sitting in their greenhouse. We were also really bad because we had another curry before I came back to Chichester. 24th April: I started colouring again!!!

25th April: I was invited to dinner with a friend. She cooked for me and then we spent the evening making play dough and watching moana (brilliant film) I actually ended up staying over night as I couldn't be bothered to walk all the way home again.

26th April: I had a hospital appointment for my preop assessment checks. Then in the afternoon, I had an interview for a job that I didn't tell anyone about - I only gone and got that job, didn't I? I then spent the evening with Emma, my housemate.

27th April: I had a trio rehearsal - it was the first time playing the flute since the concert with Greg's family - it hurt quite a lot! I then braved it and finally cut 5 inches off of my hair! The first proper haircut I've had in over two years! By gosh did it need it!! I went to my friend's house again for dinner before we went out to Ladies Night. Afterwards, I went home and ended up sitting in the kitchen with the boys in my house, "watching" football.

28th April: I had another rehearsal for trio and then again spent the evening with my housemate and ended up socialising with the majority of people that live in my flat!

29th April: Emma and I had a day binge watching session of Riverdale - we've got three episodes left and I really didn't want to stop! In the evening, I went out to a surprise birthday get together for one of my friends. It was a lot of fun!

30th April: I went to church and then went to lunch afterwards. I came home and skyped Greg before I went off for a trial shift at Zee Bar which is the student union bar. It was the biggest test for anxiety in the world and was so stressful, but I actually really enjoyed it once I got into the swing of things! I got the job!!!!

This month I feel like I really stomped anxiety down and felt like I had some very small wins in gaining control over my own life and I'm super proud of it!

I managed to find time to put up lots of blog posts for which I'm pretty proud of!

This year is flying by so quickly. I mean I say that at every first post of the month, but it's true! I hope you all had a wonderful, wonderful April and it treated you kindly.

I've really enjoyed setting blog goals over the last couple of months and I really like reflecting on them at the beginning of the next month. So here I am back again, it's the 1st May and I'm going to set myself some more goals for this month. Things will start getting a little crazier this month as the uni year is finishing and I'll go back home for the summer to start earning money again.

Reach 200 Followers on Bloglovin'- I did It!! I really didn't think I would as it was a slow, slow process but I've managed to surpass my goal. I'm really enjoying seeing my following grow and to see that people want to actually connect with my blog makes me feel so happy.

Interact With and Comment on Other Blogs - This I've also managed to do! I've got involved with blog link threads to find and comment on, I've used bloglovin' more to interact with people's blogs. I've really enjoyed stumbling across new blogs and new bloggers.

Write at least Two Blog Posts a Week - I did it!! I managed to find the time to write and schedule my blog posts long before they were actually due up! I even managed to upload three blog posts a week and it was really fun!! A lot of them this month have been to do with recipes but I enjoy cooking and I hope you've enjoyed reading my blog this month.

Read Two Books - This one I failed, I've only managed to read one and even then I started it in March. I got to into watching things or talking to mum in the evening whilst I was at home for Easter.

Reply to Comments Left on Blog Posts - I think I managed to do this one! I was trying to be really proactive and respond to the comments left on my blog by people. It's so heart warming to see the amount of people that did comment on my posts this month.

I think I did pretty good with April's goals and I can only hope that I can stick to May's goals too!

I made a Facebook page a little while ago, but I'm awful at keeping it going and also not really sure on how to use it properly. So any help would be appreciated on trying to sort that out.

Two: Interact With and Comment on Other Blogs

I'm going to keep this one here because I really enjoy interacting with other bloggers. This means I have to show up to blogger chats too on twitter as I've been neglecting them in the past month - oops! I must set an alarm for them!

Three: Continue to Write and Schedule Three Posts

Last month, I actually managed to do this and I was so happy with myself! I felt such a sense of achievement by doing this and loved coming up with ideas to write about. I definitely think reading other blog posts really helps with getting ideas for your own posts.

Four: Meet Blogging Friends

I've been talking to so many people on Twitter, through chats - I really want to meet some of them face to face and get to know them outside of the internet world. I want to develop friendships further because it makes it all the more interesting!

Five: Be consistent

Consistency is key to keeping people interested and I really want to keep people engaged so they come back again. My following keeps going up and down - not on twitter or bloglovin' but more on my actual blog. When I look at my stats (except the other day when they'd sky rocketed randomly), I always feel a little disappointed, I want to keep them consistent like the random day - all the time!

During my baking weekend a couple of weeks ago whilst Greg was down, he requested that I make him lemon drizzle cake as it's his favourite cake. It gave me something to bake, and I also like it lots too. He also wanted me to halve it and put lemon curd and buttercream in the middle so that's what I did.

Unfortunately, mum's oven is very powerful and often, you have to bring it down by 20°C and I forgot to do this, so it baked too quickly and formed the peak on the top. I also over mixed it so it was a bit stodgy and grainy. But it's all a learning curve, right?

It did taste really yummy! It went down a treat with Greg and I got girlfriend points for making it! And had loads of fun!!

This is actually my first favourites post of the year - oops! I love getting near the end of the month and reading what people have been loving. It often shows me what products people like to use and their opinions are often more powerful and meaningful than any product advertisement, in my opinion of course!This month, I've been loving more of the skin and hair care products more than make up, as that hasn't really changed for a very long time. Whilst I was at home for the Easter Holidays, I made a point of looking after my skin, managing to cleanse it twice a day!!! It's really thanking me for it - it's the best it's been in a very, very long time. I've also giving my hair a break from all the heat, instead favouring the natural curls, waves and frizz. I've even left my hair dryer and straighteners at home, whilst I'm back in Chichester for the next 4 weeks.

Here's what I've been loving:

Skin:

Face:

Garnier - Micellar Water - I've heard so much rave about this on the blog world, that when I saw it in Home Bargains for 99p, I had to pick it up. I already love it and can see where the hype came from! It makes my skin feel lovely and really does get rid of all the makeup.

Sanctuary Spa - Radiance Exfoliator - I've had this for a while and love it! Mum gave it to me to try over the Christmas holidays and usually I find exfoliators too harsh on my skin but this is quite the opposite. It smells lovely and is gentle.

Origins - Zero Oil Deep Pore Cleanser - I've been having a lot of trouble with oily and spotty skin in the past few weeks (probably to do with my messed up hormones and cycles but that's a different subject!) When mum and I went to the outlet village on mother's day, we found this gem and my skin has loved it! It's really cleared up since using it and I've also found it not too drying for my skin, which usually changes very quickly from oily or dry. Instead, along with the rest of the products I've been using has balanced out nicely!

Estee Lauder - Day Wear Moisturiser - This is my favourite moisturiser EVER! It really does stop my skin from feeling tight and horrible! I have bought the large pot, but I decant a teaspoon of it into my travel pot to keep the main pot germ free! Plus the little pot is easier to take around with you and pack in your bag! I love the cucumber scent to it and it has an SPF25!

No7 - Soft and Soothed Gentle toner - I have found previous toners to be too harsh on my skin. But as this one says in title, it's a gentle toner . It refreshers, comforts and hydrates. It leaves my skin feeling soft and not too dry. As you can see in the picture I've pretty much used the bottle - I bought a new one today! It's definitely my go-to toner!

Carmex Original - My lips are always so dry and cracked, but this sorts it out. Makes them feel soft again.

Body:

Nivea - Smooth Nourishing Care Hand Cream - with all the weather changes recently, my hands were really suffering. I picked up this travel size in Primark and have been using it since. I no longer have dry sore hands

Aveeno - Skin Relief - I've been suffering a lot with dry skin all over and a flare up of eczema, this lotion has worked wonders on it and has completely calmed it down.

Baylis and Harding - Royal Bouquet Peach Poppy and Vanilla Shower Creme - As I mentioned in the previous favourite, I have eczema. This means I have to be very careful with what shower gels I use, otherwise I come out in a rash. This one doesn't give me a rash, and smells wonderful! It came in a gift pack to my mum a while back and she doesn't want it anymore so kindly gave it to me.

Hair:

L'Oreal Elvive - Extraordinary Oils Shampoo and Conditioner - I absolutely love this shampoo and the conditioner! I love the smell for one, but also the fact that it makes my hair feel so soft and nourished. It gets rid of the dryness of my hair and makes it feel so much better. It helps protect my hair from the damage of straightening. Garnier - Ultimate Blends, Coconut Oil - As I've been wearing my hair curly recently, this oil has been great at keeping the curls, curly and less frizzy! It also smells delicious! TRESemmé Moisture Rich Shampoo and Conditioner - I ran out of the L'Oreal Elvive whilst I was at home and forgot to ask my mum if she could buy me some more. We did however, have a lot of this product (as they bought ginormous bottles back from their last Costco trip. It does much the same as the L'Oreal and it also smells just as good. I've been using it whilst I've worn my hair curly and it seems to respond well to that.